Michelle McCoy turns a mountain into a molehill

Michelle McCoy of Gadsden, Ala., almost saw her life flash before her eyes two summers ago. She was on vacation in the Smoky Mountains, and began to hike up the daunting Clingman's Dome. Navigating the tough terrain proved treacherous for Michelle. The reason? She weighed 221 pounds.

Michelle literally felt like she was going to have a heart attack and die that day. With high blood pressure, high cholesterol, acid reflux disease, and chronic swelling in her legs, Michelle was in no shape to hike mountains. Rather, it was time to march straight into her local Rainbow City L A Weight Loss center.

Michelle's counselor helped her become more conscious of what she was putting in her body. She nixed the hamburgers, junk food, and anything else that was high-fat and high-carb from her diet. No longer swinging by the fast-food joint for breakfast and lunch, she started eating more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and drinking more water.

Although Michelle encountered a few trouble spots along the way, she always remembered that frightening day in the Smoky Mountains, and was determined never to reach that dark point again. She kept up with the L A Weight Loss plan, and lost 67 pounds. She's now at 154 pounds!

Even better, Michelle's blood pressure, cholesterol, acid reflux, and swelling are all down. She also loves to garden, and is less stressed about life. She's even taken on remodeling her home!

Michelle's relationship with her husband is much better now, too. She says she feels comfortable in clothes or out of clothes. ;)

And Smoky Mountain? Piece of cake, she says. She believes she can definitely conquer it now, toute suite!

This is Michelle before, at 221 pounds:



Here's Michelle after, at 154 pounds! Amazing job, Michelle!



FAST FACTS

Name: Michelle McCoy
Hometown: Gadsden, Ala.
Age: 47
Height: 5'4"

Starting weight: 221 pounds
Goal weight: 150 pounds
Current weight: 154 pounds
Program start date: October 2005

Favorite foods: Peanut butter and celery.

Biggest temptation: French fries.

Biggest motivator: Getting healthy and avoiding heart problems.

Biggest obstacle: Having self control with the program.

Old eating philosophy: Grabbing anything that was fast and easy.

New eating philosophy: Eating a lot of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, plus drinking only water, and watching her portions.

Best thing about losing weight: Watching her blood pressure, cholesterol, acid reflux, and swelling in her legs go down.

Best weight loss secret learned: Don't give up, even if you make mistakes sometimes. You can definitely do it!